Millennium Force features a 310-foot-tall (94 m) cable lift hill with a 300-foot (91 m) drop, two tunnels, three overbanked turns, and four hills. The coaster also has a top speed of 93 mph (150 km/h). Since its debut, Millennium Force has been voted the number one steel roller coaster ten times in Amusement Today's annual Golden Ticket Awards; as of 2019, it had never been ranked lower than second place. Although Millennium Force has been surpassed in height and speed, it remains one of the tallest and fastest in the world.[2][3]

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The planning, design and development phases of Millennium Force took place over five years.[4] The first rumors that a new record-breaking roller coaster would be built at Cedar Point, which included speculation about a ten-inversion roller coaster from Bolliger & Mabillard and an Arrow Dynamics MegaLooper, began circulating in early 1998.[5][6] A roller coaster from D. H. Morgan Manufacturing was also rumored.[7] On July 2, 1999, Cedar Fair Entertainment Company filed a trademark for the name Millennium Force,[8] which raised more speculation about what the ride would be like.[9] About a week later, the first track pieces were seen at the park, and it was confirmed that the ride would be manufactured by Intamin. Cedar Point officials also confirmed that it would not have inversions.[10]

Millennium Force was announced on July 22, 1999, as the tallest roller coaster in the world, taking the record from Fujiyama at Fuji-Q Highland in Japan.[11] Don Miears, General Manager of Cedar Point said, "Millennium Force introduces the world to a whole new level of roller coaster riding."[12] The ride cost $25 million to design and build.[13] Millennium Force was built in the Frontier Trail section of the park and the Giant Wheel was relocated to make room for it.[14][15] Cedar Point, Intamin, and Werner Stengel designed the layout of the ride. After the ride was announced, several disputes about whether Millennium Force or Superman: The Escape was the tallest and fastest roller coaster in the world arose between Cedar Point and Six Flags Magic Mountain. Superman: The Escape is 415 feet (126 m) high and its speed is 100 miles per hour (160 km/h); however, it is a shuttle roller coaster, not a complete-circuit roller coaster.[16][17]

Construction started in August 1999 when the site was cleared.[18] The removal and relocation of the Giant Wheel began in October on closing day; the first of 226 supports was installed on October 11, starting at the brake run.[4][19] Two hundred twenty-six footers, each about 5 feet (1.5 m) deep were dug; the largest ones were 56 by 56 feet (17 by 17 m).[4] The concrete construction was done by Mosser Construction.[20] The lift hill was topped off in early January 2000.[21]

The ride's construction took seven months, and 120 construction workers and project managers participated. Testing took two months.[4] The park conducted a "pull-through" by pulling a train along the course to ensure proper clearance. The ride was inspected and tested with water-dummies on the trains.[18] The first media event was held on May 11, 2000, and the ride opened to the public two days later on May 13. When it opened, it broke six world records. It was the first Giga Coaster and was the world's fastest complete-circuit roller coaster, but was later overtaken by other rides.[22][23] About a month after Millennium's debut, Cedar Point introduced a new queuing system called "Ticket to Ride" to reduce the waiting times, which allowed visitors to buy a ticket then return later and wait in a shorter line.[24][25] In August, Cedar Point engaged John Hancock and Associates and Stalker Radar of Indianapolis to measure the height and speed of Millennium Force. The height was measured at 310 feet 11 inches (94.77 m), and the speed was measured at 93 miles per hour (150 km/h), slightly faster than what the park had been advertising (92 mph).[26]

Before the start of the 2004 season, Millennium Force's seat belts were modified because of an incident that occurred on Superman the Ride, a similar roller coaster at Six Flags New England.[27] The new seat belts were shorter and some riders had difficulties with them.[27][28] The roller coaster's layout was repainted over a three-year period, before the 2011, 2012 and 2013 seasons.[29] In 2012, the park added a new LED lighting system.[30]

Millennium Force's entrance is located behind the Cedar Point & Lake Erie Railroad's Celebration Plaza station. The queue is situated between the ride's last overbanked turn and the station. A DJ booth is provided to entertain waiting visitors; the park's "Jamming DJ's" take requests for family friendly songs from people in the queue.[31] It was then replaced by Cedar Point's FUNtv, which plays music videos of popular songs, the Gatekeeper/Maverick shuffle, park trivia, sports news, park advertisements, weather forecasts, and popular news headlines. About a month after Millennium's debut, Cedar Point introduced a new queue system known as "Ticket to Ride" (later Fast Lane) to reduce the wait time. Visitors could buy tickets then return later and wait in a shorter line.[24][25] This system was discontinued in 2004 after several people complained it was unfair that others were going ahead of them in line.[32] In 2012, Cedar Point introduced its Fast Lane queue system on the ride; visitors can buy a wristband which enables them to wait in a shorter line.[33] The system was tested at Kings Island the previous year, where it received positive reviews.[32]

Millennium Force covers 13 acres (5.3 ha); it runs parallel to the shoreline of Lake Erie then travels to an island located inside the park, where the Shoot the Rapids log flume and the Dinosaurs Alive! attraction were formerly located.[34][35] There are two tunnels, three overbanked turns and four hills.[23][36] One cycle of the ride takes approximately 2 minutes and 20 seconds.[37]

The two hills that go over the lagoon and onto the island

While the train is being loaded with passengers, the catch car for the cable lift descends the lift hill and latches onto the middle car underneath the train. Once the train is cleared, the cable lift immediately pulls the train up the 45 degree lift hill at 15 miles per hour (24 km/h) to a height of 310 feet (94 m). The train drops 300 feet (91 m) at an 80 degree angle and reaches a top speed of 93 miles per hour (150 km/h) at the bottom of the hill. It then climbs 169 feet (52 m) through a right overbanked turn at 122 degrees from the horizontal axis, then travels through a tunnel as it passes over the Frontier Trail. It then travels over a 182-foot (55 m) parabolic hill, which provides a moment of zero gravity as it passes over a lagoon and down onto Adventure Island. It completes a 105-foot (32 m), 360-degree right-handed helix, followed by a left overbanked turn. It then completes a small right-hand turn before traveling over another hill to leave the island. The train then travels left through a second tunnel where the on-ride photo is taken, followed by a left turn and a small hill, passing by the queue. Finally, the train travels 68 feet (21 m) high through another right overbanked turn over the queue and is stopped by magnetic brakes. Passengers disembark the ride at an unloading station and the train moves to a second station where it is loaded.[23][37][38]

Millennium Force is a Giga Coaster model designed by Werner Stengel and built by Swiss manufacturer Intamin.[37] It was the first of a series of roller coasters, including Top Thrill Dragster—the tallest and fastest roller coaster in the world in 2003—that Intamin built at Cedar Point.[39] As of 2019[update], Millennium Force is one of only two Giga Coasters built by Intamin, the other being Intimidator 305 at Kings Dominion.[40]

Millennium Force operates with three stainless steel, stadium-style seatingtrains colored red, blue, and yellow.[12][36] Each train has nine cars that seat four passengers, allowing a maximum capacity of 36 people per train and 1,300 riders an hour.[37] Each seat has an individual, hydraulic, T-shaped lap bar and seat belt which rests across the rider's lap.[37] Each train weighs 19 tons.[4]

The station has two platforms, one for unloading and one for loading. Two trains are loaded and unloaded while the third train is running the course. There is also a separate line in the station where riders can wait for the first seat.[41] The loading platform has red overhead lights, which are located above the train.[42] Millennium Force's theme song is played in the station while riders are boarding.[43] The song contains samples from the production library Killer Tracks song "Technonaut" by Neil Pollard.

The steel tubular track is 6,595 feet (2,010 m) long and the lift is approximately 310 feet (94 m) high.[37] The track is blue and the supports are silver. The track consists of 229 pieces, each weighing between 11,000 and 17,000 pounds (5,000 and 7,700 kg).[4] Intamin supplied the track with hollow structural sections (HSS), which is used in all the track pieces, supports and towers. Millennium Force uses three different track shapes. The simplest sections are two-pipe track, made with two running rails connected by 6-inch (15 cm) square HSS cross-members. The ride also uses three-pipe track, which has two running rails with a backbone of round HSS, which forms a triangle. The third type of track forms a square and is considered the strongest. It has two running rails with two backbone tubes.[44] As both a high altitude and high velocity ride, Millennium Force is affected by unfavorable weather conditions such as rain, lightning or strong winds; under these conditions the ride is closed, but in light rain it can remain open.[41]

When the ride opened in 2000, Cedar Point chose High End Systems, headquartered in Austin, Texas, to light the ride. Rob Decker, Cedar Point's Corporate Director of Planning & Design, said that they thought they would have to mount multiple floodlights on the tower. However, they were able to install thirty EC-1 floodlights at the base of the lift hill structure which provided lighting throughout the ride's structure. Of the six main support towers, three had six EC-1s, and three towers had four EC-1s. The three tallest towers had another unit in the middle.[45]

Over the years, the lights were not maintained and grew noticeably dimmer. In 2012, Cedar Point introduced a new nighttime show, Luminosity — Ignite the Night!, to "re-energize" the park at the end of the day. New LED lights from Sunrise, Florida-based Chauvet Professional were installed to illuminate the ride. Twenty COLORado Range and ten COLORado Ridge wash lights were installed at the base of the lift hill structure.[30]

When it opened in May 2000, Millennium Force broke six world records and used a new magnetic braking system instead of friction brakes found on most roller coasters.[23][36] This new system enabled the use of a shorter brake run, which slows the train from 65 miles per hour (105 km/h) down to a standstill in six seconds.[46]

Millennium Force held the records for tallest and fastest complete-circuit roller coaster until August 2000, when Steel Dragon 2000 opened.[47] Millennium Force held the record for tallest and fastest roller coaster at Cedar Point until 2003, when Cedar Point debuted Top Thrill Dragster, which at the time was the tallest and fastest roller coaster in the world.[48]

Millennium Force had an impact on the way roller coasters were built. Following its debut, the use of cable lift hills, which require less maintenance and support more weight than a traditional chain lift, became a prevalent feature in the industry. Millennium Force also paved the way for additional coasters over 300 feet (91 m) tall. Top Thrill Dragster, also built by Intamin, opened three years later as the first complete-circuit roller coaster to exceed 400 feet (120 m) in height.[48] Intamin did not build another Giga Coaster until 2010, when it built Intimidator 305 at Kings Dominion.[49] Intimidator 305 is similar to Millennium Force, as it has a cable lift and similar layout; however, Intimidator 305 has different restraints, using shoulder harnesses instead of lap bars. Leviathan opened at Canada's Wonderland in May 2012 breaking 300 feet (91 m) as well. Manufactured by Bolliger & Mabillard, it uses a chain lift instead of a cable lift.[38][50][51][52]

Millennium Force has one of the longest lines in the park, with passengers waiting over four hours when the ride debuted.[53] The ride received positive reactions from visitors, many of whom said it was smooth and very comfortable. Others said, "It'll scare the daylights out of you".[54] In its first six years of operation, Millennium Force had over 10 million riders.[55] By August 2012, Millennium had given more than 21 million rides.[56] Several television shows, including the Travel Channel's Extreme Terror Rides,[57]Bert the Conqueror,[58]Off Limits,[59] the Discovery Channel's Extreme Rides,[46] and the National Geographic Channel's Super Coasters[60] have featured Millennium Force. Out of over 500 roller coasters that Werner Stengel has engineered, he stated that Millennium Force is his favorite.[61]Robb Alvey, a notable roller coaster enthusiast, called it a "milestone in roller coaster history".[62]

Millennium Force has consistently ranked high in various polls and has won numerous awards. Millennium Force and Superman the Ride (formerly Bizarro) at Six Flags New England held the top two places in the Golden Ticket Awards from 2001–2015, often swapping positions. Fury 325 has occupied the top spot since 2016. In the Travel Channel's Insane Coaster Wars, Millennium Force was voted the "fan favorite" in the Extreme Heights and The Top 10 categories.[62][63] In 2013, Time ranked Millennium Force as the top roller coaster in the United States.[64]